The $25,000 Pyramid
This is chronicling the original 1974 version of The $25,000 Pyramid. Game Format Main Game The game is played with two teams of two players (consisting of one celebrity & one contestant) in a game of word communication. Each game starts with the introduction of six categories arranged in a pyramid. In the main game, a category's position on the pyramid was not an indicator of its difficulty. The categories were usually puns hinting to the content within that subject. Each team in turn chose a category, and then a subject under that category was given. Each subject has seven words/phrases/names. The team had 30 seconds to guess the seven answers that fit into the category. One player described each item while the other player tried to guess what the words are. Each correct word was worth one point. When a word was passed, it cannot be returned to, but if the guesser can guess the word already passed, the team still scored. If at any time the clue giver gave away any part of the answer or conveyed the essence of the answer, a cuckoo sounded and the word was thrown out. Each team had three turns with the celebrities giving first in round one, the contestants giving in round two, and in round three they decided amongst themselves on who's giving and who's receiving. During the 1977-78 season, any team who achieved a perfect score of 21 points won a $2,100 bonus. Special Bonuses At some point in the game, a team would uncover a special card behind one category prompting a bonus situation. To win the bonus, the team had to get all the answers right. In situations where a team can win the game without needing all the answers or has won the game automatically, if the last category concealed a bonus, the team was allowed to play all the way out in order to win the bonus. *'Big 7' - This first appeared in the second season. The team that exposed the Big 7 had 30 seconds to get all seven and win $1,000 in the first two seasons and a brand new car in the final season. *'Big Money Card' - This was used from 1976-1978. A random cash amount between $1,000 and $5,000 ($1,000-$4,000 during the 1977-1978 season) was hidden behind a category. Whatever the amount exposed, that's the amount the contestant was playing for by getting all seven. During the 1977-1978 season, the only season to have the "Perfect 21" bonus, should the team have a score of 14 points and the "Big Money Card" was behind the last category, getting all seven won both bonuses, worth between $3,100-$6,100. Tie-Breaker If the game ended in a tie, the game shifted into a tie-breaker situation. The team that caused the tie had a choice between two letters leaving the other for the other team. Both teams had 30 seconds to get as many of the seven items beginning with their letter(s) as they can. The teams continued building on their scores using the tie-breaker categories. This caused an achievement of very rare high scores. Extra ties kept the game going, and as soon as the tie was broken, the game was over. If the tiebreakers precluded playing a second Winner's Circle, the one who won the tiebreaker earned $2,500. By the final season, the rules were changed. This time each team played their 30 second round of seven answers each. The team that got the most out of seven won the game. If both teams got seven, the team with the fastest time was declared the winner. ---- The team with the most points won the game. Winner's Circle The giver of the winning team faced a larger pyramid board of six subjects with the guesser having his/her back to the board. The winning team had 60 seconds to climb up to the top of the pyramid by getting all six. On each subject, the giver gave a list of items that fit the subject while the guesser tried to guess what they all have in common. As soon as the guesser gets the right subject or passed, they moved on to the next subject to the right. Upon a pass, the team can come back to it if there's time leftover though the guesser can still get the subject without going back to it. If at any time the giver gave an illegal clue (giving away part of the answer, conveying the essence of the answer, descriptions of the category or a synonym) a buzzer would sound, the subject was re-concealed and the team forfeited the chance at the big money. The giver was discouraged from using his/her hands which is why they were strapped into the chair. Even though the big money was forfeited, the team can still go for the other subjects, because when time ran out, the contestant still won money attached to the subjects guessed; of course, getting all six in 60 seconds without illegal clues won the grand cash prize. Payoffs Here are the amounts for each subject: The first trip was worth $10,000, the second was worth a total of $25,000. Winning the $25,000 augmented the player's prior winnings to the grand prize. During the final season, if someone won a car, the value of the car would be removed from the cash winnings, leaving them with exactly $25,000. Trivia Daytime Pyramid host Dick Clark made two appearances on this version, and both times helped his partner win $25,000. This version was distributed by Viacom. Merchandise Photos Press 44.jpg 12717253 10153449108223494 5470803104799592450 n.jpg 25Pyramid11.jpg 25Pyramid6.JPG 13566950 10153764320243494 5485002063692022020 n.jpg 374169_10150402725908494_989741912_n.jpg 375222_10150402725668494_686904042_n.jpg 25kpyr.jpg Bill Cullen (1974).jpg 0D21D9A9-E18A-45EE-B336-A9E4C728D24F.jpeg Logo 13123098_10153634442148494_2162835344395472318_o.jpg Print Ads $_25,000_Pyramid_Bill_Cullen_Ad.jpg $(KGrHqNHJEQE-Q,8uln6BPqLQLYQ0g~~60_3.JPG $(KGrHqVHJEIE-nNppeyvBPqLQJd6Mw~~60_57.jpg CullenPyramidAd1.jpg CullenPyramidAd2.jpg CullenPyramidAd3.jpg Joan Rivers-Anson Williams (1974).jpg|1974 episode. Press Ads 1974-40.png 1974-41.png $25,000 Pyramid 1974-11-18.jpg 1974-50.png $T2eC16hHJGsFFMnUlrvGBRmHGGlEFg~~60_57.jpg 1974-70.png 1974-71.png $(KGrHqN,!qcFF+yDfk82BRlH6nj8zw~~60_12.jpg 1975-20.png 1975-30.png 1975-40.png $25,000 Pyramid 1975-6-23.jpg 1976-10.png 1976-11.png 1976-20.png 1977-20.png $25,000Pyramid_Viacom_ad.jpg 040878.jpg Pyramid'78_Cullen.jpg $25,000_Pyramid_1976.jpg $25,000 Pyramid.jpg Viacom 1976.jpg Tickets The $25,000 Pyramid (September 27, 1974).jpg|September 27, 1974 The $25,000 Pyramid (July 31, 1975).jpg|July 31, 1975 The $25,000 Pyramid (May 19, 1976).jpg|May 19, 1976 The $25,000 Pyramid 1976 Ticket.jpg|June 26, 1978 Episode Status See Also: The $10,000/$25,000/$20,000 Pyramid/Episode Guide Video See Also The $10,000 Pyramid The $20,000 Pyramid The $25,000 Pyramid (1982) The $25,000 Pyramid (2010) The $50,000 Pyramid The $100,000 Pyramid The $100,000 Pyramid (1991) The $100,000 Pyramid (2000) The $100,000 Pyramid (2016) The $500,000 Pyramid The $1,000,000 Pyramid (2000) The $1,000,000 Pyramid (2009) Pyramid (1996) Pyramid (1997) Pyramid (2002) The Pyramid (2012) Pyramid Rocks The Junior Pyramid Junior Partner Pyramid All-Star Junior Pyramid Links Category:Game Shows N-Z Category:Pyramid Category:Syndicated Category:1974 Premiere Category:1979 Ending